Houston — Charming Charlie, a women’s fashion and beauty chain based in Houston, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Thursday. It is the second time the retailer known for its colorful displays of jewelry, handbags, apparel and beauty products has filed for bankruptcy in less than two years. The company now plans to close all 261 of its remaining stores across 38 states. The retailer’s first filing was in December 2017, and the financial restructuring was completed the following April. However, the company continued to struggle following the reorganization and, according …
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Washington, D.C. — Madison Marquette, a leading national real estate investment manager, service provider, developer and operator based in Washington, D.C., finalized its merger with The Roseview Group, a boutique institutional real estate investment and advisory company based in Boston. Roseview’s chief executive officer, Vince Costantini, is now serving as CEO of the combined firm. Before launching Roseview, Costantini was president and COO of Boston Financial, an institutional real estate investment adviser. He also spent 10 years at General Investment and Development Co., where he began the transformation of the …
Los Angeles — Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW), a premier global developer and operator of flagship shopping destinations, has revealed details of its global Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program — the most ambitious of its kind for a listed retail real estate company. Called “Better Places 2030,” the CSR program will now formally extend to the United States and the United Kingdom, which were a part of the acquisition of Westfield by Unibail-Rodamco last year. Broadly, the program commits URW to reduce its total carbon footprint 50 percent by the year 2030 across every …
Maitland, Fla. — Equinox Development Properties Inc. has hired Genny Hall as senior vice president and a partner to oversee the leasing for all developments and retailer relationships. Hall has more than 15 years of retail brokerage experience. Prior to joining Equinox, Hall served as the managing director of retail services at Colliers International in Central Florida. Maitland, Florida-based Equinox Development specializes in developing retail, mixed-use and boutique commercial projects.
Two New Tri-Land Investment Funds Hungry to Acquire Grocery-Anchored Retail Assets in Midwest, Southeast
In today’s volatile retail real estate climate, there is ample need for redevelopment or value-add acquisitions. Tri-Land, a Chicago-based owner and operator, is one such company known for repositioning underperforming retail centers. Established in 1978, the company is launching two new investment funds beginning in July. The two funds — which combined total $30 million — seek to purchase between four and eight properties over a 30-month period. The strategy of the investment funds will be to acquire properties located in Midwest and Southeast markets, including Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Kansas …
New York City — Elliott Management Corp. has agreed to acquire Barnes & Noble for $683 million, or $6.50 per share. In 2014, Barnes & Noble closed its New York Fifth Avenue store, which was once the world’s largest bookstore. The company operates 627 stores in all 50 states. Elliott, which acquired the U.K.’s largest book retailer, Waterstones, last year, will become the largest bookseller in the U.S. when the acquisition is finalized. The deal is expected to close by the end of September. Barnes & Noble has been exploring …
Mahwah, N.J. — Dressbarn, a women’s apparel retailer, plans to eventually close all 650 of its stores nationwide. The New Jersey-based company is winding down its retail operations and plans to assist its 6,800 associates with transition support as individual stores close. “For more than 50 years, Dressbarn has served women’s fashion needs, and we thank all of our dedicated associates for their commitment to Dressbarn and our valued customers,” says Steven Taylor, Dressbarn’s chief financial officer. “This decision was difficult, but necessary, as the Dressbarn chain has not been …
New York City — Richard Johnson and Charlie Koniver have launched Odyssey Retail Advisors LLC, an expansion and rebranding of Johnson Retail RE Consulting Inc. Johnson and Koniver both previously worked for global luxury group, Kering. Johnson is an attorney and member of the New York State Bar and created Johnson Retail, serving clients such as Crown Acquisitions/Wynn Las Vegas, Boston Seaport, Burberry, Stella McCartney, Sergio Rossi and Clarins. Koniver previously collaborated with Johnson while serving as a real estate specialist for the Americas at Kering. Daniel Lewis has joined Odyssey …
Memphis, Tenn. — Fred’s Inc. (NASDAQ: FRED), a discount chain and pharmacy, will close 159 underperforming U.S. stores, approximately 30 percent of the company’s total footprint. Memphis, Tennessee-based Fred’s will have about 400 general merchandise stores left open following this round of closures. Fred’s, which competes with smaller-format discount retailers like Dollar General as well as big-box stores like Walmart, also owns and operates two additional chains: Getwell Drug & Dollar and Yazoo Trading Co. The majority of those stores house full-service pharmacy departments, but the company is also looking …
Virginia Beach, Va. — Alex Divaris, executive vice president of Divaris Real Estate Inc., died April 8 due to complications from colon cancer. He was 40 years old. Divaris assisted local, regional and national investors, users and sellers in the acquisition and disposition of retail, office and industrial properties in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast. He earned a bachelor’s degree of business administration in finance from The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, is a Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) and sat on the board of directors of the …